


Let me be the flowers that bring you happiness

by PinkLotus (EspurrsVena)



Category: JO1 (Japan Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst, Fox bros are actual bros, Hanahaki Disease, M/M, Marriage, Unrequited Love, no beta we die like real men, some junkeigo too
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-23
Updated: 2020-09-23
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:02:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26617159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EspurrsVena/pseuds/PinkLotus
Summary: At the farewell party before his exchange year, Sukai meets Takumi and falls in love after spending the night with him. He can't forget the other one during the whole year abroad only to find out that his crush has become the fiancée of his brother in his absence.
Relationships: Kawanishi Takumi/Kawashiri Ren, Kawanishi Takumi/Kinjo Sukai
Comments: 8
Kudos: 17





	Let me be the flowers that bring you happiness

**Author's Note:**

> Note: the cursive part is the flashback which is the main reason (along with the ending) for the mature rating. I rather put a higher rating than no warning at all.

Technically it was supposed to be a happy occasion. After studying a year abroad, Sukai finally met his brother again and it was planned that he also meets his brother fiancée for the first time. However, there was a problem that made the day the exact opposite. The reason for that was that he didn’t meet his brother’s soon to be husband for the first time. That guy was the person who didn’t leave his thoughts the whole time he spent abroad. 

“Sukai, meet Takumi. Takumi, meet my brother Sukai.” Ren was totally unaware that his brother and fiancée had meet before. He didn't even notice his brother slight uneasiness because he was simply too happy that two of the most important people in his life finally met in person. 

“Nice to meet you, Takumi.” For once Sukai was glad about his poker face. He didn’t want his brother to notice the conflicting feelings inside of him. Ren was glowing like the sun and Sukai WAS happy that he was happy; he just wasn’t happy about the guy who made him happy. It could have been everyone BUT Takumi. Everyone but the guy he only met once but didn’t leave his thoughts for a whole year. Yet, who would have expected that the Takumi who took his brother’s heart in a storm was the same Takumi who was unforgettable to him? The name wasn't uncommon. 

“Nice to meet you, too.” Meanwhile Takumi seemed awkward. Was it his natural shyness or did he remember him?, Sukai wondered. He remembered the other one to be a shy person – it was the original reason why they stuck together on that fateful day. 

_That day Sukai’s seniors from the soccer club decided to throw a farewell party for him. Originally he didn’t want one but once Junki decided something, it happened. Thus, a good night of sleep before his departure was out of question. As expected of his senior, one of the most popular guys of the club and maybe even of the whole campus, he dragged a bunch of people to the party that Sukai had never met before. Among those people had been Takumi._

_In Takumi's case he had been dragged to the party by Keigo. Because pretty much everywhere where Junki was, you could find Keigo, too. Usually, Ren was found somewhere close to them, too, but on that day, his brother had to go to a different city for an interview and could only return to bring Sukai to the airport the next morning._

_Hence, Sukai felt nothing but awkwardness at the party. However, being the reason for it made him feel obligated to stay. Normally, he would cling on Ren’s side at such parties and earlier he had tried to stay close to Junki, yet eventually the senior had disappeared together with Keigo. Thus, the soon to be overseas student felt even more lost. With a drink in his hand, he stayed in some corner and waited until the appropriate time to leave had come._

_Ultimately, Takumi ended up being lost in the same corner. The back then pink haired boy was as awkward as him, yet just like in math class two negative things resulted in something positive. Their mutual uncomfortableness because of the party made them comfortable with each other._

_“Did you see Keigo somewhere?” Takumi was the first one of them to talk.  
“He disappeared with Junki, so I would rather not know where they are and what they are doing right now.”  
“True.” The way the other one crutched his nose in that moment was cute. There was simply no other way to describe the face the other one made. “You are the reason for the party, aren‘t you?”  
“More like the excuse for it. Junki wanted a party and got one.” An evening with snacks and DVDs would have been Sukai’s preferred activity, but no one listened to him anyway. _

_“Sounds like him.” The other one sounded equally done with the antics of the popular students. “I’m Takumi by the way. Your name is Sukai, right?”  
“Yes and yes that’s really my name and not a nickname.”  
“I thought so.”  
“You won’t believe how many people believe it’s just a nickname...” _

_From that point on their conversation flowed smoothly. Takumi was part of the baseball club and Sukai thinks he saw him at the sport fields sometimes. He was in the same major as Ren but in the same year as Sukai and their circle of friends was quite similar, yet their paths never had crossed somehow. Most likely due their introvert side, they didn’t go out as often as their friends, hence that day marked their first meeting. Yet besides meeting for the first time, Takumi's presence felt right and like an old friend. Their vibes were on the same wave-length, thus making them get along on the spot._

_After some time, they moved from the corner to one of the sofas and in one way or another they were in their own world. Both didn’t even notice when Junki and Keigo returned or their remarks. However, the two hosts were entertained by seeing the introverts opening up at least to each other and decided to reward them by bringing them new drinks._

_At first Sukai didn’t notice what kind of drinks their seniors had brought them. They were sweet, so only after the third one he noticed that those were alcoholic drinks. Originally, he didn’t want to drink that day. He wanted to avoid being hungover during the flight but it was most likely too late at this point already. On the bright side, he felt even more comfortable now and being with Takumi felt good. He couldn’t stop listening to his baseball stories besides having no clue about the sport. Also, he couldn’t stop looking at the pink haired one. He was handsome, more handsome than anyone he had met before._

_“And then... Sukai? Are you still listening?” Meanwhile Takumi’s face colour resembled his hair colour because of the alcohol. At least that’s what Sukai believed in that moment.  
“Hm? Yes of course.” In reality, he had no idea what the other one had said earlier. He had just enjoyed the sound of his voice and looking at his face.  
The pink haired one took another slip from his drink. “I think Keigo put alcohol into it... I told him I can’t drink because of the practise tomorrow.” _

_Takumi’s pouting face was just cute. Sukai couldn’t believe that there was someone out there who could be that handsome and cute at the same time. He couldn’t believe that the other one was real.  
Without realising it, he laid his hand on the back of the other one’s head and gently pulled him closer. Takumi’s pout quickly changed to a slightly confused expression which made him even cuter and Sukai couldn’t help but take the last step and kiss him. _

_To his surprise Takumi kissed him back on the spot. Besides spending so much time outside, the pink haired ones lips were soft and tasted sweet. Sukai himself wasn’t that experienced yet, but he just knew that the other one was a good kisser; hence he couldn’t get enough from him. He pulled him even closer, so that the baseball player nearly sat on his lap. But the other one didn’t protest and stayed glued to his lips. The taller one entangled his fingers into the surprisingly soft pink hair to make sure that they would stay like that.  
It was like a dream. Sukai melted into the kiss and besides being the one who initiated it, he let the other one take the lead. Yet he made sure that Takumi stayed in place, stayed as close to him as possible. No kiss in his life had been like that one. Maybe it was the alcohol in his veins that made him that crazy for the other one and his lips. Or maybe it was just the the guy in his arms himself._

_An eternity had passed when they finally let go of each other, yet it only happened because they needed oxygen. Sukai’s eyes didn’t leave the other one’s face which was still close to his own one and even the shy Takumi didn’t take his eyes of him. His head was blank. Only the guy in front of him existed in his world. “Takumi...”, he said breathlessly, ready to kiss him again, but the other one laid a finger on his lips.  
“Not here.” _

_Unlike him Takumi had been more aware of their surroundings and the fact that all eyes were on them. Thus, he got up, took Sukai’s hand and let him outside while the other party guests made their comments on them. But brown haired one couldn’t hear them. His heart was louder than their voices and the man leading him occupied his mind. He even barely registered how could it was outside.  
“Do you live close?” Sukai could only nod. _

_Sukai never had been that thankful to have his dorm on the campus. If the way had been any longer, he wouldn’t had been able to stay composed enough to lead Takumi to his room. Once the door closed behind them, he pushed the pink haired one against the next wall and kissed him as if there was no tomorrow._

_That there was in fact no tomorrow for them was forgotten by Sukai. All what mattered was the man he was kissing. Each second the kiss became more heated and eventually one thing led to another. Maybe it was the alcohol once more that had given them enough courage to make this happen, yet he didn’t care. The night was unforgettable and even when the other one was already sleeping in his arms, he could still feel his lips all over his body._

_However, when Ren woke him up the next day to bring him to the airport, he was alone. Takumi was nowhere to be found, not even a trance of him was left. His older brother, not knowing what actually happened, was equally confusing about Sukai’s reaction, but they hadn’t got much time left before the flight. Luckily, his suitcases had been prepared the day before already, but the mysterious disappearance was all that was in his mind._

Until this day Sukai remembered every second he had spent with Takumi as vividly as it happened on the day before. The whole time he spent abroad, the memories of his face, his lips and his voice occupied his thoughts and he wondered how they could meet again. That met his crush again was like a dream, yet the circumstances made it become a nightmare. 

“How did you meet?” Maybe Sukai was masochistic, but he wanted to know that. He didn’t even know why, but he had to know.  
“It’s such a funny story. After I brought you to the airport, I returned to your dorm to pick up your leftover food and there I met him looking lost. Takumi was so cute that I couldn’t help but ask him out.” 

“Reeeen, stop it.” Takumi was obviously embarrassed by something but the youngest one wondered what it was. Maybe it was that he was called cute, Sukai remembered that the other one had reacted shyly when he did that. Or was it that he was caught looking for him? At least he hoped that. 

However, Sukai had so many more questions. Had Junki and Keigo seen them make out back then too? They would have told his brother, wouldn’t they? Should he mention that he has some kind of past with Takumi? Should he talk to the now red haired one about that? Everything seemed so complicated. 

Yet Ren was happy and glowing. In his whole life he had never seen his brother that delighted and the way Takumi still hold his brother’s hand told him that the feeling was mutual – besides the awkwardness of the current situation. If Sukai ignored his own feelings, he would have been able to see how perfect the two looked together. Ren’s silver hair and Takumi’s red hair were a nice contrast. Takumi’s short but most likely still muscular body melted perfectly against Ren’s slightly taller slim figure. At the same time, Sukai wished to be in his brother’s place. The whole year he imagined himself in that place without knowing that the person he longed for was so close and yet so far. 

Still, it was surprising that he only found out now. He knew that there was a Takumi in Ren’s life, but he had never seen an actual picture of him. All pics his brother had sent him had only shown parts of his body or his backside. His brother enjoyed taking sneaky pictures as if he didn’t want to share Takumi’s handsomeness with the world. The situation was a mess. 

“So, you know each other only for a year? And you want to marry already?” The youngest one didn’t want to sound bitter, yet a slight bitterness escaped his voice.  
“I know it’s fast but sometimes... you just meet someone and you just know he’s the one?” Unfortunately, Sukai knew that feeling too well. He thought the same about the same person. “Takumi is that person for me and I can’t imagine a life without him anymore.” 

This declaration made Takumi blush and shyly looking away. How Sukai had missed to see him flustered, but it pained him that this time he wasn’t the reason for that anymore. Everything that happened in front of him was what he had imagined for a year and both his heart and lungs hurt as if he had just finished a 100-meter sprint while having a cold. “I see.” 

“You will find someone like that, too, I know it. Didn’t you meet someone nice during your exchange year or did that mysterious guy occupy your mind that much?” Eventually Sukai had told his older brother the reason for his confusion on the day of his departure, yet it seems like no one had connected the dots that it was that Takumi. However, at first his disappearance before Sukai had woken up had made him feel used. That he was nothing but a one-night stand for him. That his feelings were only one sided. He had to talk to someone about this and his brother had been the natural choice. And now, he had the chance to talk to Takumi about this finally and yet he couldn’t do that. 

“I don’t know.” He had met people during the year, but no one had taken his heart by storm like Takumi did. The red haired one had set the bar that highly that Sukai couldn’t forget him. Everyone he had met only became his friend.  
“This guy must have been someone truly awesome to make you fall for him that hard. Hopefully you will find him again now.”  
Both Sukai and Takumi didn’t know what to say in that moment. At least the baseball player’s uncomfortable face confirmed that he remembered Sukai, too, but he stayed on his brother’s side. 

The day didn’t become much better for Sukai. Ren wanted to involve him into the planning for the ceremony. The younger brother didn’t want to imagine this at all, but for his brother he stayed and suffered quietly. He hoped that the pain he was going through now would cure him from his unrequited love. At least Takumi seemed to be on his side a little by trying to put him into roles that don’t have to do much with the actual ceremony, but as the only brother of one of the grooms, it was natural that he had to take an important role. Luckily, the role of Ren’s best man was reserved for Junki already, but eventually Ren won and put Sukai in charge of arranging everything behind the scenes.. 

Both brothers had been always close, thus Ren believed no one could arrange a better ceremony than the person who knew him the best. Wanting to make his brother happy, Sukai ultimately agreed but the pain in his chest was still there. Once the torture was finally over, he returned home, yet it wasn’t the end for his misery. When he reached home, all the suppressed feelings made him feel sick and throw up. He threw up flowers and, in that moment, he knew the situation had turned for the worst. 

For his own sake, Sukai tried to avoid his brother and his fiancée the next days. He knew he had to deal with the situation, yet the shock about the whole situation and the disease he had developed as the result of that made him distance himself from everyone who knew the couple personally. First, he had to figure out how to proceed on his own.  
Still, that didn’t mean that he locked himself into his apartment. He was glad to leave it as often as he could – that place had too many painful memories anyway. 

During his overseas stay he had met three other Japanese students who happened to live in the neighbouring cities. They had grown close during their time and while no one captured his heart like Takumi did, Sukai was more than glad to have met them.  
Especially in the current situation he valued their existence, so when Syoya suggested a meet-up, he agreed to it on the spot. 

They all gathered at a café and besides that only two weeks had passed since the end of their exchange program, it felt like a lifetime had passed.  
“So, how is it to be back home?”, Shion asked.  
“Weird and awesome at the same time. But I’m so glad to have my mom’s cooking back.”, Syoya answered while scanning the menu of the café. That boy could only think about food anyway. 

“I missed my family so much. My nieces and nephews grew so much, I could barely recognise them.” Before anyone else could say something, Shosei started to show around pictures of them because no matter the situation he always took pictures. “Speaking of pictures, I made photobooks of our time together! Here you go.” The blonde one took out three photobooks from his bag and gave it to his friends.  
“Thanks. I need a reminder of happier times.”  
Just like Sukai himself, Shion seemed quite down the whole time which made him wonder already. “Why?” 

“I wanted to surprise my girlfriend after my return and guess what? I found her with another guy.”  
“Your 3D girlfriend or your 2D one?”  
“Not funny, Syoya..” Those two always bickered, so it was left to Shosei and Sukai to comfort their friend.  
“I’m sorry for you.”  
“You will find someone better soon.”  
“Thanks guys.” 

While their time abroad seemed to have passed in a blink of an eye for each of them, Shion’s situation once again reminded Sukai how much time had actually passed, how many things had changed in that time and that the world that they left wasn’t the same one they returned to.  
“What about you Sukai? Did you meet the mysterious boyfriend of your brother or that guy you are crushing on finally?”, asked Shosei. 

Actually, Sukai had hoped that he could avoid the topic, but his friends of course knew about everything, too. They had grown close during the year, so naturally they shared talks about love among each other, too. While Sukai had grown up in an accepting environment, he had been initially a bit afraid to share his story. Boys in his age could be cruel, yet everyone had been accepting. Yet because of the recent happenings, he would have preferred not talking about it. “Both.” 

“For real?” On the spot each of the three other boys were hooked on the topic, even Shion seemed be interested in it.  
“But it’s not like you think... My crush and my brother’s boyfriend, who is by the way his fiancée now, are actually the same person.”  
“Holy shit and I thought I was unlucky.”, commented Shion on his confession and the other two just nodded. 

“Do they know?”, asked Syoya after a while.  
“Ren has no idea that Takumi and me have met before, but Takumi was slightly uncomfortable when we met, so I guess he remembers me.”  
“Damn... That’s like the plot of a bad anime.”  
“Shion, your otaku is showing.” In some way Sukai was glad about Syoya’s snide comments towards Shion. It distracted him from his own problem at least for a moment.  
“You should talk to them. Didn’t you say that you’ve met on a party organised by your friends? Didn’t they see something?”, asked Shosei. 

A lot of people had seen Sukai and Takumi making out at the party back then. Of course, they made out in the middle of that party, yet he didn’t remember Junki or Keigo being there, too. At first, they had delivered those awful drinks to them but after some time everyone but Takumi had become blurry. Honestly speaking he didn’t remember any face but Takumi’s one from that night. The back then pink haired one had been the sole centre of his mind. “I don’t know. But Junki is Ren’s best friend. If he had known it, he would have talked to my brother.” 

Eventually, the boys agreed on dropping the heavy topics. Both Sukai and Shion needed to be cheered up, thus they focused on good food and fun things. It managed to distract the broken-hearted boys at least for the afternoon. But eventually each one of them had to return home and the bubble of happiness burst. 

As a twist of destiny, he met Junki on his way home. The older one was actually one of the people, he wanted to avoid, yet he knew that sooner or later he had to talk with someone who was actually involved in that mess. Starting from the side lines could be a good approach. Not to mention that he couldn’t get rid of Junki anyway after he spotted him, too. 

“Suuuuukai, my favourite junior. Ren told me you are back but you seemed to be hiding from me.” Junki had called him a few times but in his depression or whatever his feelings were Sukai had ignored those calls. “I would never. But becoming used to the life here again was more difficult than I expected.”  
“Okay, I get that. Come on, let your senior treat you to a meal to catch up.” Sukai didn’t have a choice anyway, but the free dinner sounded nice. The last days he hadn’t eaten much and the stuff he ate with his friends barely counted as proper food, too. 

“So, have you met Takumi already? They are cute, aren’t they?” Sooner than Sukai hoped it would happen their talk shifted to the red haired one.  
“Yes, they are.” In another life, one in that Sukai hadn’t lost his heart to his brother’s fiancée a year ago, he would have truly agreed to the statement.  
“Was it the first time that you’ve met? I’m not sure, but I think I saw you two talking during your farewell party.”  
So Junki remembered something from that night, but there was still the question until which point the older one had watched them. “Yes, we’ve met at the party.” 

“Okay, I wasn’t sure. I’ve drunk way too much that day thanks to Keigo.”  
“How much of the party do you remember?” Sukai had no idea how to approach the actual topic, but that seemed like a good start.  
“Ah you surely want to know about that mysterious stranger that took your heart by storm but dumped you after the one-night stand, right? Sorry I have no idea. When you left, I was busy...” A slight blush appeared on Junki’s face and the younger one knew who made his friend busy in that moment. 

“It’s okay. It’s actually what I wanted to know.” So, if Junki had no idea, there was no way Ren knew about his and Takumi’s past before dating him.  
“Give me more details. You are so secretive about that guy. You should at least know his name or what did you scream in bed?” 

The other one didn’t let him drop the topic so now Sukai had to confess the truth to the first one of his pre-exchange friends. He knew he had to talk with someone, yet it was actually more difficult than he thought.  
“I know his name, but it’s impossible now.”  
“It’s not. Everyone who attended was either from our club or friends with me or Keigo. So, we will find this guy and kick his ass for disappearing in the morning.” 

“I wish it was that easy.” He truly wished that. But the circumstances weren’t that easy. The whole thing was a huge mess.  
“Why?” Sukai was about to reply when two of Junki’s braincells seemed to connect. “Oh my god, don’t tell me it was” Sukai was ready to agree, but then his friend dropped the wrong name. “Keigo. It was Keigo while I was drunkenly sleeping somewhere.”  
“No... It was-”  
But the older one didn’t let him finish the sentence. “It was me and that’s why you are avoiding me! Oh god no, I’m so sorry, Sukai, but you are like-” 

“Junki, please shut up for a second. It wasn’t you or Keigo. It was Takumi.” At least Junki’s failed conclusions had made telling the truth easier.  
"You are joking, aren't you?"  
In some way it was funny that it seemed more believable that he hooked up with Junki or Keigo than with Takumi. Not even in a parallel universe he would fall for any of them. They were far too extrovert for him. "No, I'm telling the truth. I liked him from the beginning and the drinks you two had given us gave me courage to act on it.”  
“Oh shit.” 

The shocking revelation was one of the rare things that made Junki actually shut up for once, but that didn’t last long. “Now that you say it. I remember talks that Takumi left with someone, too, but I never connected the dots... until now. But why did you never say anything?” 

Actually, this was the big question Sukai asked himself since a few days, too. This mess could have been prevented or at least softened if he spoken up sooner. But he had a thousand excuses why. First, he had to become used to his new life abroad, then his brother announced that he found the love of his life, at the same time Sukai’s own heart was broken because the other one had left without a word, then he was so confused that the guy who took over his brother’s heart shared the same name with the guy who stole his one and at one point, he just became used longing for this stranger. “I don’t know... When I finally came to terms with everything, I felt like it was too late?” was the best explanation he could offer. 

“You have to talk with Ren.”  
“No, I can’t do that. He is so happy and I can’t take it away from him.” As miserable and envious as Sukai was, blood was still thicker than water, so he just couldn’t interfere into his brother relationship. Notably, it was due a mess he created with his stupidness.  
“But you can’t hide it forever. I didn’t want to say that earlier, but damn Sukai, you look awful. You have circles under your eyes worse than during the exams period.”  
“I know...” 

“And Ren wants you to be involved into their wedding. He told me that you will help organising everything, don’t you? If you don’t speak up everything will become worse.”  
Little did Junki knew that everything was the worst already. Yet so far no one knew about his disease. “I can’t talk to him about that...”  
“Then talk with Takumi. You obviously need a closure from that night.”  
In this point his senior was right. A closure was something Sukai needed and maybe it would even make the disease disappear even when the legends said something else. 

However once again he had no idea how to approach the topic. Technically speaking he and Takumi were still strangers and he didn’t want to ask Ren for his boyfriend’s LINE ID. He didn’t want Ren to suspect anything because he feared to ruin his happiness. That his own happiness had been shattered was already awful, yet he didn’t want his brother to experience the same besides his jealousy. As long as he could remember Sukai always had been the person to take a step back when it came to other people and their happiness. It never had caused any problems like it now and each time he eventually got his share of happiness, too, thus he hoped the same would happen. Once again he made a bunch of excuses to avoid a confrontation. 

Nonetheless, when he woke up coughing up flowers one morning, he knew he had to act. He knew that he at least had to get a closure before he could proceed.  
When he checked his phone, he found a message from his brother asking whether he had time that day to continue planning the ceremony. Hoping that Takumi might be there too and they could find a moment to talk, he agreed to the torture of meeting. 

Because Ren had graduated only a few weeks ago and Takumi still being a student, they needed to find a way to make the ceremony both beautiful and cheap. The red haired one tried to convince his fiancée that the ceremony could wait until he graduated, too, yet Ren wanted to have the full package at least on that day. They had to push the honeymoon to the far future already, so at least the day of their marriage should be beautiful he argued. Not being able to say no to him, both Sukai and Takumi agreed to help him to figure out a way. 

Eventually, Sukai found the solution thanks to his friends. Shosei could do the photos and use them for one of his assignments, Syoya actually had to design suits for his major soon and Shion worked as a DJ part-times, so he could take care of the music. Then Ren remembered that the family of his friend Sho owned a restaurant that could do the catering with a friendly discount. Same could go for another friend of Ren, Ruki, whose family owned some hotels where they could celebrate. Junki and Keigo were the best men of the grooms and even Junki’s little brother Issei would help by designing the invitations. Thus, this left Sukai in charge with the decoration which could be done cheaply but beautiful, too. 

Wanting to talk with his friends about his plans, Ren left his brother and fiancée alone, finally giving Sukai the chance to talk to the other one. Yet once the oldest one had left the atmosphere turned awkward. Takumi was staring at his drink and Sukai was insecure how to start a conversation. The mutual comfortableness from their first meeting had disappeared. 

“You can leave if you want to. You don’t have to stay because Ren said so.”, the red haired one eventually said.  
“No... actually I wanted to talk to you. I just don’t know how.”  
“About back then?”  
“Yes, I think we should talk about it. For Ren.” In truth, Sukai only wanted it for himself, yet it felt more appropriate to say it like that. Now that the moment that he was about to talk about it had finally come his heart started to beat faster. Not because of his feelings for the other, no, at least they were not the main reason, rather he was nervous about what the other one’s perspective was. 

“I guess you are right.” For a moment Takumi seemed to collect his thoughts before he continued to speak. “I’m sure you are wondering the most why I left without a word.”  
That Takumi got to the topic without him saying much would have made Sukai happy in another situation. From the moment on they’ve met they had understood each other’s way of thinking. “That’s right.”  
“Well, what should I say? When I woke up I panicked... I’ve never done something like before. When I realised how stupid and mean it was, I’ve returned but you weren’t there anymore.”  
“Instead you met Ren.”  
“Yes. He was so kind and him asking me out shocked me, but I couldn’t say no... He has the same eyes as you. Maybe that was what made me agree initially.” 

Sukai was always told that he and Ren had the same eyes. Everyone always knew on the spot that they were brothers because of their almond shaped eyes that reminded everyone of foxes. “But you didn’t know that we were brothers?”  
“I had no idea. Sure, you two look alike but back then I thought it was just my mind tricking me. While you have more.. I dunno a hard look, Ren has a much softer one. Only when he showed me a picture of you, I’ve realised the truth. But then I had already fallen in love with your brother. And you never knew until you returned?” 

It made sense what the other one told him. If it wasn’t for the alcohol back then, Sukai wouldn’t have acted the way he did. He would have never made out with a stranger or taken him home. Maybe if he had been in Takumi’s place, he would have even reacted the same. “No, all pictures I’ve seen from you were either just parts of your body or your backside.”  
“Ah makes sense. In the beginning I’ve asked him not to take any pics of me. I didn’t know how people might react. But he found sneaky ways to take them anyway.” The way the red haired one talked was clearly the way you talked about the person you love doing stupid things. You were so in love that you couldn’t even be mad at them besides disapproving their actions in some way. “Maybe I should have tried to contact you after I found out, especially when Ren mentioned that there was someone you were hopelessly crushing on. But I didn’t think that I was that person.” 

“Don’t blame yourself.” If there was someone to blame for the situation it was himself. If he acted on his feelings, he wouldn’t be sick and heartbroken now.  
“Well now it’s too late anyway. I’m going to marry your brother.” In some way Takumi looked sad in that moment, making Sukai wonder whether the other one had some regret.  
“Do you truly want to do that?” There was a seed of hope inside of Sukai. He knew he shouldn't have it but he kept telling himself that he only wanted the best for everyone.  
“Yes. It’s much earlier than I always planned to and I wouldn’t mind if Ren would push it back sometime, but I know he is the one. Maybe me being coward with you was destiny’s way of leading me to him. I just regret that it means hurting you. You are my love’s brother and I like you.” 

Sukai should have expected those words, but they still hurt like a hot knife pushed into his heart. The seed of hope inside of him had turned to an ugly plant with thorns that bore themselves into his heart. What made the situation worse was that he could feel something clogging his throat again. “I’m glad that you found your happiness.”, he shocked out before going to the bathroom, so that he could spit out the flowers. 

On the one hand he had gotten the closure he wanted, but it hadn’t cured him. No, it was even worse than before and he had to act on it now. He had to find a doctor who could extract those flowers from him. It would mean that he would forget Takumi, but a fresh start from his side wasn’t something bad at this point, he thought. 

“Are you alright?”, asked the red haired one worriedly when he returned.  
“Yes, today is just a little too much, so my stomach started to act up.”  
At first, the other one seemed not to believe his explanation, but he accepted it eventually. “Alright. I’m glad that we have solved that thing now. Now let’s work on making the day perfect.”  
Even with a broken and bleeding heart, Sukai couldn’t help but think that Takumi’s smile was the most beautiful one in the world. 

Ultimately, Sukai found someone who could cure his disease, but the operation was scheduled for the day after the wedding. While he carried some anxiety regarding this late day, he tried his best to stay positive. He could continue until that day and he would make sure that both his brother and his love would get the most beautiful day in their lives. Afterwards a new life for him would start, too. 

However, the flowers thought differently. Each time when he was working on the decoration of the ceremony, they made breathing harder and one time he couldn’t hide them before someone else appeared. Luckily, it was only Shosei would had come over to check the light of the venue.  
“Wow those flowers are beautiful. They must have been expensive.” 

In one way his friend was right. Those flowers were expensive because they costed his health. “No, they were actually quite cheap. But I don’t know whether I should use them.” Wouldn’t it be morbid to use the flowers that could kill him for such a joyful occasion? Especially when that occasion was the cause for them?  
“No, they are perfect! Gerberas are perfect flowers for a wedding and don’t you think their colours kinda look like the hair of one of the grooms?” Shosei had a point. The colours of the flowers reminded Sukai of Takumi and all the pink and red shades that his hair had. “Use them. You said you got them cheap? Perfect.” 

From that point on, Sukai kept each flower that left his mouth and used them to decorate the venue. It felt wrong and right at the same time, yet no one but him knew the truth anway. When Takumi and Ren came for the final check, especially Takumi was excited about the flowers and Ren was proud of him for getting such beautiful flowers without ruining their budget.  
He was more in pain than ever, especially because Takumi’s hair had returned to a pink colour, the same shade as on that fateful day, but for the most important people in his life he continued to smile. He had to endure everything another two days. In two days, the pain would stop and he could start a new life. 

Still, the day of the wedding started horribly. Not the alarm clock woke up but the feeling that he was about to chock on the flowers in his throat. It took him agonizingly long to throw up everything and even afterwards he still felt like his lungs barely got oxygen. But there was no time to think about it, a nervous Ren knocked on his door and it took both him and Junki to calm his brother enough to make him get ready for the ceremony. 

The suits that Syoya had designed looked breathtakingly on his brother already so that Sukai was afraid to see Takumi in it. But he couldn’t run from the situation. Ren needed him. Junki needed him because he was unable to calm his best friend alone. They even called Issei to smack some sense into his older brother again. It was the first marriage in their friend circle, so no one had some experience with that kind of event which in turn made everyone nervous. Well, everyone but Sukai. He was too anxious about his own condition. He had to survive another 24h while making sure that no one noticed anything. 

Each second that passed made Sukai’s breathing problems worse and he took every free second, he could find to get rid of the flowers, yet they never stopped. Yet no one realised the truth of the situation, everyone thought that the nervous feeling made him go to the toilet all the time. He was glad that everyone made their own wrong conclusions. 

At one point, Keigo came over to check on them and to ask how they dealt with their groom’s nervousness. Just like Ren Takumi seemed to be on the edge. Yet that it took three people to calm the silver haired groom made Keigo look for other help in the end. 

At the same time, seeing Ren that nervous and hearing the same about Takumi made Sukai realise once again how much his brother loved the other one. No matter what happened, Ren was usually the calmest person on earth. Not even a haunted house could scare him. But the significance of that event took all the coolness from him. Furthermore, that feeling was mutual, thus there was never a chance for Sukai after his return. He wanted to be happy for them, yet the pain in his chest made it hard. The only thing that gave him hope was the upcoming extraction. He only had to survive that day – but it was the worst one in his life. Not mentally like that day he was told that his yearlong crush was his brother’s fiancée, no this was worse because it both affected him mentally and physically. 

By the time everyone took place in the venue it became hard to hide his breathing problems. He could feel more and more flowers clogging his lungs and throat, but the ceremony was about to start, hence making him unable to leave. He prayed that he could pull himself through everything. 

30 minutes. The ceremony was scheduled to last 30 minutes and then he could spit out those flowers again and continue with the day. He only had to survive those 30 minutes. And then the next day, he would be rid of the flowers forever. He could do that. He could survive this horrible ceremony.

Syoya and Shion took place next to him while Shosei was standing near the front so that he could take pictures. Having his friends close to him should made Sukai feel reassured but with each breathe he took, less oxygen reached his lungs, thus making his panic grew. Still, he kept his poker face up. For his friends, for his brother and for Takumi who entered the venue in that moment. 

The pink haired one was stunning. He wore pretty much the same white suit as his brother only a few details had been changed. While Ren had pink gem stones on his suit and a pink gerbera in his jacket pocket, those were silvery-white in Takumi’s outfit. Never in his life Sukai had seen someone more beautiful. His friend had managed to make Takumi more gorgeous. Meanwhile, the arriving groom made his brother’s jar drop. Ren must have thought similar as his brother. 

It was ironic how alike they were. Not only did both brothers share the same eyes, no their eyes couldn’t let go of the breath-taking man that had arrived at the front.  
However, in Sukai’s case “breath-taking” wasn’t metaphorical. Oxygen stopped reaching his lungs and flowers were everywhere inside of him. He even couldn't ask for help, he simply dropped to the floor and Takumi’s beautiful appearance was the last thing he saw before his vision turned black.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone!  
> The Hanahaki prompt has made a comeback and actually this was my first idea on the Skyberry pair... Don't ask my why I like writing suffering Sukai. I don't know it either.  
> The end is open so it's up to you to decide whether Sukai survivies or not.  
> Well, next time is gonna be happy Sukai again, I promise.  
> See you~


End file.
